Knucklehedz - Stricktly Savage (shelved, released in Germany on May 11, 1993)

Today's post is the final entry in my current Hit Squad run. It is also the most depressing.


So if you've been following my blog in recent weeks, I guess you'd be quite familiar with the EPMD story: Two very talented and driven people who shared a genuine friendship that was ripped apart by their rapid artistic success. There's absolutely no doubt in my mind that the Hit Squad breakup prevented what could've been one of the biggest movements in musical history. What transpired after only served to sour the mouths of everyone who ever got down with Erick Sermon, Parish Smith and underlings K-Solo, Redman and Das EFX. Thankfully, all parties involved were able to push through and build respectable careers for themselves in this hip hop game. Hell, even sidelined acts like Keith Murray and Craig Mack, who practically lost their door into the industry because of said breakup, were able to dust themselves off and find other gateways in. As I said, all parties involved were able to push through. All but one.

The Knucklehedz were one Tom Jimenez aka Tom J the Savage and one Steve Austin. (Yeah sure. As if Steve Austin the wrestler, blond, balding and famous for drinking beer and swearing Southern obscenities at his foes, was a chip-toothed gangly MC from Brentwood, Long Island with a head full of brown hair all this goddamn time.) These two are Brentwood, Long Island natives. Tom J got down with Erick Sermon way back in high school. He was introduced to Parish right after EPMD blew, and Parish liked him so much he invited him into the crew, to whom Tom stayed loyal to ever since. He’s even been famously shouted out on the EPMD classic Rap Is Outta Control. Now, Steve was Tom's younger childhood friend. By the time Tom got down with the Hit Squad, he was bringing Steve with him everywhere. Obviously, EPMD liked the other kid as well so he was added to the lineup. The two buddies, who were already making rap demos at this point, formed a group not long thereafter, got shouted out again on Nobody’s Safe Chump (another EPMD favorite) and hooked up with the Hit Squad’s secret weapon: Charles P. Marotta aka McGyver. Who is this man, you ask?

McGyver is the man responsible for EPMD's prowess behind the boards. Both of them. The main mixer for all the classics from the Hit Squad camp, McGyver has remained a constant within the crew to the extent that you even hear him on some of their legendary albums, most notably playing guitar or reciting rhymes Reggie Noble wrote for him on Watch Yo Nuggets. Bottom line, McGyver is the fucking man.

One thing about these two that I respect to infinity is that they never rode their more famous crewmates' coattails. As batshit crazy as that sounds, the Knucklehedz were trying to shop their demos on their own, until one day Parish heard the shit by accident. I guess he liked what he heard, since he signed them directly to Shuma Management, the record company that he ran by himself.

Shuma was the reason there were grumblings from street dudes in Erick's camp that the money wasn’t split down the middle. Said assholes thought they were being loyal when they robbed Parish's home and blamed Erick for the robbery when they were caught. Whomever you people are, fuck every single one of you and fuck what you know about life.

Now that I got that outta the way, our duo finally decided on a name for the album they were working on. Aside from building a platform for its two headliners, Stricktly Savage was supposed to introduce McGyver as another dope producer within the Hit Squad team. The plan was for him to handle half the album, while EPMD themselves handled the other. That half was split between Erick and Parish in what turned out to be an interesting opportunity to compare their respective approaches to production. Sadly, it was not meant to be.

Stricktly Savage was pulled by the fuckheads at EastWest Records because they didn't see the value in promoting an act related to a splintered movement. Especially when the actual leaders of the movement were now beefing with each other. Never mind the fact that the album was already done and its two lead singles already received the video treatment. Never mind all the hard work that Tom J and Steve Austin put in to have this one shot.

Proof that bullshit has always been around in this filthy game. Shame. I wish I’d have been one of the lucky few who actually saw the release of this album in Germany. Then again, I was just starting school back then. Oh well.

Out of respect for these dudes, I’m going to be giving this album the fully-released treatment. I’m going to talk about the songs presented as if they actually reached their target audience.

Boy/girl (pick one), this is Stricktly Savage:

HED RUSH

McGyver sets shit off here with an instrumental sampling various funk classics, including James Brown, that'll crack your spine, readjust it and crack it again. Seriously, these drums are hard as fuck. Props to the Slick Rick, Grand Puba and Books In Reverse samples as they contribute that much more in painting the song's true picture: A textbook braggadocious entry on which Steve lets loose a flurry of punchlines that truly reflect the Hit Squad school he's learned from. Read: He's dope as fuck. Tom J is up next and while his lyrics are very up to par, unfortunately his delivery is noticeably lacking the passion his partner has for this. Both have a fairly decent monotone delivery that serves them well, though. Overall, a terrific album opener.

STRICKTLY SAVAGE
The lead single. And I know exactly what it's called on the tracklisting. Watch me not give a fuck. McGyver gloriously one-ups his previous production, even though he's sampling many of the same samples as Hed Rush, with what may very well be the best beat on the album. I'm telling you, that bassline will cause you to lose your shit. Curiously, Steve is the one sounding unmotivated this time, while Tom J truly blacks the fuck out. Seriously, look out for the second verse on this joint. The duo end the single with a back-n-forth verse that comes off as a tribute to mentors EPMD. Such loyalty is very rare and kind of heartwarming. Which is good, because you'll be replaying this track for quite some time. My favorite song on the entire album. McGyver even goes a step beyond and remixes this banger with an equally banging masterpiece of a jeep rattling beat, so you best check that out if you're digging what you're listening to, so far.

WUNTZ UPON A TIME
A Steve Austin solo, where he tells a story of him getting into shenanigans, breaking and entering and trying to reach a party while baked out of his fucking mind. There's a dated-as-fuck bit where someone pages dude and he calls him back. Remember pagers?! Anyway, Steve pays good attention to detail and it shows. McGyver's beat features a snugly-fit Slick Rick sample setting up storytime. Overall, this had no chance of topping the previous song, but it was fairly good nonetheless.

PARTY WRECKA
Charlie recedes production duties to PMD, who winds the energy down with a straight up goofy beat punctuated by Rev Run and Milk D samples. Somehow, that was meant as a compliment. Our duo accommodates the instrumental accordingly, with them ruining a party then bouncing to another. Rinse & repeat. Overall, this was averagely OK.

UGLEE PICTURES
McGyver's back, and boy, does he ever return with a vengeance! Packing a walloping instrumental with excerpts from fellow Hit Squadians Krazy Drazy and Redman, he sets Tom and Steve off on yet another tale of humorous rampage, this time describing how they seem to mock the authorities' efforts to take photos of our duo as evidence of them committing various acts of petty crime. And it's this song where you realize just how far Steve straight up outclasses Tom lyrically. Therefore, it was very smart to allow him to bookend the song while Tom provides the cream filling. This was awesome.

GIRLIES KEEP SCREAMIN'
Which is not the word for this crap, but you already know that. This song begins the two-song misogyny medley that I'm frankly getting sick of coming across within every fucking hip hop album. These two dipshits even waste a  perfectly banging McGyver instrumental.

ALL SHE WANTED
This was bafflingly a single! With the video treatment and all! Aside from this being a light-hearted Erick Sermon beat, this is the exact same track as the previous one.

TROUBLE MAKAS
Thankfully, we're back to these two finding new ways to describe their tales of mischief. Charlie brings his final beat for the album before bowing out, and it's his tamest one yet. This shouldn't be considered as a knock against it at all. The Knucklehedz' fun is infectious and they do sound with every passing song like they're enjoying the hell outta themselves, which adds to the entertainment value.

5 HOODS IN A 4 DOOR
Ah yes. The 'criminals in cars' medley, which starts strong with a menacing tale of a group rolling in a titular 4-door who are out for chaos and destruction. These two utilize the back-n-forth style they dabbled with on the 'title track' to describe various instances where things went south fast for people who crossed them, and the attention to detail here is awesome. And the duo's monotone delivery here takes on a haunting effect, which sounds easy but is very hard to pull off. Of course, this is all to an addictive PMD Jeep-rattling instrumental with Redman sampled on the hook.

WHO CALLED DA COPS
Production duties switch back to Erick Sermon, who attempts to one-up Parish with his interpretation of a slow and threatening instrumental built around a familiar Kool & The Gang and Boobie Knight & the Universal Lady mesh, along with an Ice Cube sample for its hook. The Knucklehedz are obviously loving this as they turn in another winning storytelling performance, this time about them nervously escaping the law. The back-n-forth monotone triumphs yet again!

JOY RIDIN'
Parish accepts Erick's beat challenge and completely one-ups his contribution by bringing his best beat on the album, one which contains a very prominent LL Cool J sample. It's so good it almost dethrones Charlie's masterclass on the title track. Almost. The Knucklehedz continue their melancholy back-n-forth hot streak with a trio of car-jacking tales that, while not as ominous as 5 Hoods In A 4 Door, still accomplish their job effectively. No lie, I'm having difficulty finding flaws in these dudes' approach to album-crafting, so far.

MERLIN
Sampling Redman and B-Real on the same song can only mean one thing: Welcome to the stoner song! The high-octane instrumental is Erick Sermon's finest contribution to Stricktly Savage and best believe it does its job well. Time would tell if the Knucklehedz were true weed connoisseurs but they smartly kept the concept within their overall image of white trash troublemakers. Well, Steve's image as Tom J's most probably a Latino. Nevertheless, the final song on Stricktly Savage is one you will enjoy bumping in your car on a brisk, clear weather roadtrip with your dipshit friends getting your collective asses baked into the car seats. Guaranteed.

FINAL THOUGHTS
Oh boy. I may not be that old, but I am old enough to know that Stricktly Savage would've definitely been a smash under EPMD's Hit Squad umbrella. The Knucklehedz had some serious pedigree as far as background goes and their image damn well wasn't no popularity gimmick. Best way to describe them to a head is that they were the East Coast's answer to House Of Pain, another underrated hip hop group. Only our protagonists never embraced a foreigner's identity: These two wore their Woods troublemakers image proud. That dedication went a long way towards making their rhymes enjoyable and their lyrical efforts appreciated. It certainly didn't hurt that they had a kickass production crew, as McGyver and his two legendary proteges delivered some of their best beats to these two. Hell, there is zero doubt in my mind that McGyver would've been a star producer had this album been properly released. And for everyone who followed EPMD during their solo careers and somehow think that Erick was the lone production genius of the duo, this album proves otherwise as it show just how devastating a focused PMD can be behind the boards. Alas, we all had to return to reality sometime. I cannot stress this enough, though: Stricktly Savage surprised the fuck outta me after my first listen.

WORTH IT? How many times do I have to tell you? Knucklehedz = Good. 21 Savage = Bad. Now, git.

For the remainder of the Hit Squad war chest, check here.